The Translation of the Bones

by Francesca Kay

Reality or delusion? Fantasy or fact? When word gets out that Mary-Margaret O'Reilly, a slow-witted but apparently harmless young woman, may have been witness to a miracle, religious mania descends on the Church of the Sacred Heart in Battersea. The consequences will be profound, not only for Mary-Margaret but for others too-Father Diamond, the parish priest, who is in the midst of his own crisis of faith, and Stella Morrison, adrift in her marriage and aching for her ten-year old son, away at boarding school. In the same parish Alice Armitage counts the days until her soldier son comes home from Afghanistan, and Mary-Margaret's mother, Fidelma, imprisoned in a tower block, stares out over London with nothing but her thoughts for company. Remembering her early childhood by the sea in Ireland, the bleak institution she was sent to and the boy she loved, she hungers for consoling touch. In the meantime Mary-Margaret's quest grows increasingly desperate. But no one is prepared for the shocking outcome that ensues. The Translation of the Bones is a searingly powerful novel about passion and isolation, about the nature of belief, about love and motherhood and a search for truth.

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Religion, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Audiobook

213 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Francesca Kay’s first novel, An Equal Stillness, won the Orange Award for New Writers in 2009. She lives in Oxford with her family.

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Translation of the Bones, Francesca Kay’s second novel, is a quiet book.

It paints pictures of lives, and it shows how those lives are changed by one event.

And it is a powerful book.

It says a great deal about the importance of faith and the huge significance of motherhood.

At the heart of the story is Mary-Margaret O’Reilly. A young woman, a little slow-witted and very devout. Mary-Margaret is one of a team of ladies who regularly clean the Church of the Sacred Heart, near her home in Battersea, and that role is very important to her.

During one afternoon’s cleaning something happens that will have repercussions for all of those present. Mary-Margaret falls from a stepladder, breaking her wrist and hitting her head. As she falls she sees the eyes of a statue of Christ open, and his wounds bleed.

Word of what has happened spreads quickly, and the small church is beseiged.

Stories begin to unfold,

Mary-Margaret believes that she has been chosen, that she has been given a mission. Meanwhile Fidelma, her house-bound mother, waits at home, wholly dependent on her daughter for food and company.

Stella Morrison fought to become the second wife of a successful man. She won, but now her youngest child is at boarding school and she is lost. Alice Armitage feels the absence of her son too. She copes by keeping busy while her son fights in Afghanistan.

Father Diamond struggles to cope with the aftermath of Mary-Margaret’s miracle, and finds himself questioning his vocation.

Francesca Kay illuminates all of their hearts and minds. She drew me into their lives, and she made me understand their emotions, their hopes, their fears.

She used her setting brilliantly: the timeless church rituals set aginst mundane details of life in contemporary London. And the writing was a joy. Such a lovely turn of phrase, such a wonderful eye for a telling detail.

The Church of the Sacred Heart, the congregation, the locale came to life.

What happened was dramatic, but it felt natural, inevitable.

There were times when it was painful to read, when I wanted to look away. I couldn’t. I was involved, and I had to see things through to the end.

I’m glad that I did.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Francesca Kay won the Orange Prize for New Writers in 2009 for her first novel, An Equal Stillness, a fictional biography of a female artist.

In The Translation of the Bones she explores new territory, setting her story in a quiet Roman Catholic parish in Battersea, London - well, perhaps things are not as they seem and the peace and calm belies a whirlwind of emotions and tumultuous questions about faith, organised religion, relationships especially those between mothers and their offspring.

Mary Margaret O'Reilly is a devout young parishioner, spending most of her time cleaning the Sacred Heart Church. She is described by the parish priest as a "duine de Dhia" which literally means "child of God" but which used to be the Irish term for a child with special needs. Whilst cleaning one particular statue of Jesus on the cross, she witnesses a "miracle" and she believes the statue is actually bleeding. Religious hysteria and frenzy ensue and the church suddenly becomes the focus of manic religious fervour. Indeed the story reminded me of the many reported sightings of "moving statues" in Irish churches during the mid-80s - folk are always hungry for examples of modern "miracles".

However, the "miracle" is merely a backdrop to the stories played out by local parishioners including Margaret Mary's reclusive mother, Fidelma who is confined to her high-rise flat where she reminisces about maltreatment by the "holy" nuns whilst waiting for her daughter to feed her. Stella Morrison feels the removal of her son to boarding school like the cutting of the cord, Alice Armitage keeps herself busy tending to the needs of elderly parishioners in an effort to distract herself from the pain of having her son fighting in Afghanistan. After a decade in the priesthood, Father Diamond, still finds himself questioning his vocation. One would be forgiven for thinking that the Sacred Heart parish is indeed in a "state of chassis".

I really enjoyed this novel - there are times when loud and brash does the trick for me but I also appreciate those quiet, unassuming books which gradually reveal little gems of characterisation and exploration of themes, here, the painful nature of motherhood, the role of faith in our lives, the frightening aspects of change. The lack of chapters, speech marks could sound alarm bells amongst prospective readers but I can assure you that the prose flows so smoothly that I didn't even notice their absence until I finished reading the novel and flicked through it - she's that skilful as a writer! Whilst reading I was reminded of the writing of Brian Moore (The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne) which is another reason I'm looking forward to reading more from the pen of Francesca Kay.

[Pamela Todd · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Translation of the Bones is wonderfully written – a fresh new novel to shake the cobwebs off and introduce readers to something a bit different.

The style for one thing, is genius. No chapters, no dialogue tags and skips between multiple POVS. For a lot of writers, this would be catastrophic. Francesca Kay pulls it off effortlessly. She places you firmly inside the hearts and minds of her characters; their fears and delusions almost becoming your own.

Mary-Margaret O’Reilly is at the centre of the novel, bringing all the other threads together. She is a simple-minded woman, who enjoys her work cleaning Sacred Heart church. She takes particular care of the statue of Jesus on the cross. One afternoon’s cleaning has disastrous consequences for all involved. Mary-Margaret falls from a precarious position, breaking her wrist and banging her head. Before her fall, Mary-Margaret believes she saw the eyes of the statue open, and the wounds of Jesus bleed.

A crowd descends on the church, with many believing what Mary-Margaret is saying. While she is pondering her soon-to-be fame and now passionate relationship with Him, Alice Armstrong is awaiting her son’s return from war. Stella Morrison is in an unhappy marriage and pining for her son who is off at boarding school. Father Diamond is trapped in his own worries. Mary-Margaret’s mother, Fidelma, who is house-bound and disabled, is stuck in her small flat with nothing but her mind and memories for company.

The Translation of the Bones is a thought-provoking novel, with so many elements and twists. It is a story of passion and desperation, of loss and tragedy. It is not to be missed.

[Paul Pessolano · Rating 2 out of 5]

“The Translation of the Bones” by Francesca Kay, published by Scribner.

Category – Fiction/Literature

This is an unusual book, both in the writing and the content. Francesca Kay is English and it is written in the European style. There are many English words that will be very foreign to American readers and, at times, the story becomes very descriptive and wordy.

The story takes place in a small town in Great Britain and centers around a small Catholic Church and its community.

Mary-Margaret O’Reilly was born out of wedlock and is living with her mother. Her mother, Fidelma, suffers from the fear of the “lift” (elevator) and is obese.

Alice Armitage is anxiously awaiting her son’s return from a tour of duty in Afghanistan.

Stella Morrison is in a troubled marriage and waits for her young son to come home for Easter Holiday from Boarding School.

Father Diamond, who is in the throes of questioning his vocation and faith, is thrown into the turmoil of his parishioners.

Mary-Margaret is mentally challenged but has a strong connection to her Catholicism. One day while cleaning a crucifix in the church the image of Christ opens his eyes and bleeds from his wounds. Mary-Margaret, seeing this, falls off a stool and is hospitalized.

This action starts a series of disastrous events that affects the entire church community.

[Lesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, I didn't really know what to expect. It's an ensemble piece, that encompasses the lives of a small community around a catholic church in Battersea.
I thought this author's prose was very effective in the first instance; her description of the army boys returning from Afghanistan was stunning. Seen through he eyes of a slowly unravelling Father Diamond it was beautifully done. I was reminded of Amanda Craig at her best. Every character is well rounded and believable, and the reader really cares what happens to them.
I was very pleasantly surprised at the grip this novel had on me from the very beginning.
She tackles issues such as religion, loneliness and isolation, and, close to my heart, the searing pain of separation from your child. The characters were all sympathetically realised. I loved this book.

[☕Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ratings:

Writing 5
Story line 5
Characters 5
Emotional impact 5

Overall rating 5

[Tina Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Knowing that the title refers to the movement of holy relics, I have to say I anticipated a slightly different story. But on the other hand, relics bring to my mind pilgrims. I can't help thinking about *The Canterbury Tales* when I consider the meaning of the title. All of the characters in the story revolve in various orbits around the church where a miracle may or may not have happened. Rather than introducing us to the various characters going on a pilgrimage, Kay gives life to a small cast of characters going about their regular routines, giving us a feel for them & their interconnectedness before the tragedy at the heart of the story ripples out to change them all. I enjoyed meeting all Kay's characters. They are all so beautifully flawed & so very human.

After reading the book, I really appreciate that much more Scrappy Lamonte's comment about the tradition of throwing the bones as a means to predict the future. The future is tricky business & there's no telling where the bones will land. I though about that often as I read the book. On any given day who knows what will happen?

It is by pure chance that Felix is in the church in time to prevent the death of another child... or is it? Mary-Margret was expecting divine intervention & in steps Felix. And because he gave his life to save another on sacred ground no less, Felix might well be considered a saint. It's not by accident that story takes place during Easter. The ceremony of translating relics is a rite usually reserved for the relics of saints. In that sense, the translation of the bones could refer to Felix's removal from the church & subsequent transport to the hospital. The statue of Jesus that was believed to be source of a miracle by Mary-Margret remains quietly in the church. And sadly, the pure potential that is the very nature of a child is now silent as well. At the end of the day, what has more value? A life or an inanimate object? It's an easy question to answer & yet so many of the characters in the story shared feelings of isolation & loneliness (in marriage, in boarding school, empty nest, the fragile widows/widowers, not to mention Father Diamond's crisis of faith that puts him at a remove from his congregation & the church itself). Mary-Margret offers up her prayers in the Church of the Sacred Heart, but Lonely Hearts would perhaps be closer to the truth.

*The Translation of the Bones* tells a subtle tale, to be sure, but it does offer up a lot to contemplate.

[Diane D · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Church of the Sacred Heart in London takes center stage in Translation of the Bones, a moving story about how different individuals deal with issues like faith, loss and grief.

Mary Margaret O'Reilly is a 33 year-old woman, childlike in thought and action. She lives at home with her morbidly obese, housebound mother, Fidelma. One day, in preparation for Easter week services, she is cleaning a statue of Christ, and while doing this, she believes she sees blood coming from Christ's wounds, taking a tumble and bumping her head in the process. Off to the hospital she goes, however, the incident causes hysteria among the faithful when word about what she claims to have witnessed spreads far and wide, and the faithful flock to this small church.

When one of the other volunteers hears that Mary Margaret took a tumble, bumped her head and was in the hospital, her response was....

"Mary Margaret was already two-sandwiches short of a picnic, Mrs. Armitage had said. Lord knows what she'll be like now."

Without giving too much away, I'll just say that this book is so much more than a story about someone claiming to have witnessed a miraculous vision. It's a story about several individuals dealing with their own inner turmoil, and issues of faith. The author does a wonderful job delving into the psyche of each of the characters: Mary Margaret, her mother Fidelma, Mrs. Armitage, Stella Morrison and Father Diamond. For me, Mary Margaret was such a sympathetic character, especially after learning about her mother's past, and the dysfunctional mother-daughter relationship the two had shared. In fact, all of the characters were memorable in their own way.

The story is very dark, but at the same time time thought provoking. For a debut novel, the author expertly creates an atmosphere of foreboding that makes the fewer than 250 pages seem to come alive off the pages. The ending was one worth waiting for ---wow.

(Initially when I finished this book in July, my rating was 4.5/5, but now that (3+) weeks have passed ,I've decided as I write this review, it's definitely one of the better books I've read recently. It is just so different from anything else I've read in a long time, so I really feel it's worthy of a 5/5 stars rating.

READ this BOOK.

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reason for Reading: The Catholic plot intrigued me as well as the author being an Orange Prize winner.

This is a story of faith; of faith tested, lost, denied, renewed and tragically misplaced. The story is dark and it is sad but it is not without hope and redemption. A short book, it makes for a quick read and the book is more about characters than it is about action. A couple of events take place and the majority of the book then ruminates on how the characters react to and deal with those events. The characters are all wonderful. An assortment of Catholics, lapsed Catholics and non-religious. Each is an entirely real person with faults and each one the reader can find sympathy with. The story revolves around a young-ish priest who is undergoing a small crisis of faith at the time of the first event and he feels as if this state of his mind has made him unable to respond in the way in which he should have done thus making his personal crisis of faith feel even more burdensome to him. The characters all find themselves asking questions about their faith, or lack of it, without being able to come to an answer that is not found in the faith itself. I enjoyed the portrayal of a parish community and found some of the thoughts and ideas to be true, while others I quite disagreed with. But on the main, I wholeheartedly found the story to be thought-provoking and stimulating, sad and dark, yes, but redemptive and full of the mystery of the faith.

One does not need to share the faith of these characters to enjoy the book, but only wish to journey with them as they travel the paths that all people traverse when they put their lives in the hands of a power greater than them.

[Katie · Rating 1 out of 5]

This one was not for me.

I’m going to attempt to keep this review very short. I did not like The Translation of the Bones by Francesca Kay at all. Not even a little. The book aims to tell the tale of what happens when a somewhat slow-witted but harmless young woman, Mary-Margaret witnesses a miracle, maybe. Religious mania descends on the Church of the Sacred Heart in Battersea, London. The consequences are devastating, not only for Mary-Margaret but for others, including Father Diamond, the parish priest, who is in the midst of his own lonely crisis of faith, and Stella Morrison, adrift in a loveless marriage and aching for her ten-year-old son, away at boarding school. Meanwhile another mother, Alice Armitage, counts the days until her soldier son comes home from Afghanistan, while Mary-Margaret’s mother, Fidelma, imprisoned in her tower block, stares out over the city through her window with nothing but her thoughts for company (Amazon provided most of this recap).

The problems are many, but here we go. First, the introduction to the story, told through Mary-Margaret’s eyes ends up being more confusing than it needs to be. Second, there are no chapter breaks in this 200 page book and the narration slides back and forth between the characters listed above without any real demarcation and at times incredibly rapidly. Third, I found it impossible to like these characters. Fourth, Kay’s writing is far denser than it needs to be.

I appear to be alone in my feelings on this book, as it seems to have garnered quite a bit of praise when it was published this January. Also, Kay won the 2009 Orange New Writers Award but I just don’t get it.

http://faintingviolet.wordpress.com/2...

[Candice · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well-written story of faith and the world we live in. Much of the book is a character study of four women, all connected to Sacred Heart Church in Battersea, London. Alice Armitage is counting the days until her son, Fraser, returns from Afghanistan. Stella Morrison excitedly awaits her 10-year-old son, Felix's return from boarding school. Fidelma O'Reilly, a morbidly obese woman who has not left her apartment in years, contemplates her sad past. But the main story is that of her daughter Mary-Margaret, a young woman of limited intelligence who volunteers at the church as a housekeeper. As Easter approaches, she has gone to great lengths to prepare for the cleaning of the crucifix in the chapel. As Mary-Margaret is cleaning the face of Jesus, the statue opens its eyes, and blood begins to flow from its wounds. Mary-Margaret falls from the chair, breaking her wrist. The priest, Father Diamond, and two other volunteers find her. As one would imagine, this is a life-changing experience for Mary-Margaret. Her desperate attempt to prove that Jesus loves her is heart-wrenching for all involved, and for the reader as well. I was moved to tears by some of the passages. The author handled the situation with eloquence and grace. A very moving story of the role of religion in people's lives.

[Scrappy LeMonte · Rating 4 out of 5]

I took the title to allude to casting bones as in divination, and did some Google searches. I found that a Bone Diviner will gather a collection of objects, for example a gemstone, a twig, a chicken bone, a shell, a crystal. Each object will represent something else, for example, family, love, traveling. You pick up all the objects in your collection, and cast them, or throw them gently. Then you can read meaning in how they land.

I think that is a good interpretation of the book. We are introduced to several characters in the book, then there is one critical event that 'casts' them. It's fascinating to see how they 'land', that is, how the event affects them, if they have a change of heart, or if their lives change, or if their thinking changes or remains the same.

Very good book.

[Teresa]

This is a painful and difficult book to read. I found it made me feel very low spirited every time I picked it up as if all those joyless, painful lives were sucking all joy out of the reader along with their suffering. The writing was very good but the subject matter was difficult and perhaps a read for when you are feeling strong. The star rating totally inadequate here as I cannot rate it in terms of like or dislike.

[Bachyboy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I struggled to like this book. The idea of witnessing a miracle in the Catholic Church really interests me but I found the character of Mary-Margaret very unappealing and the book made me feel low spirited most of the time. The shocking outcome at the end of the book is hard to stomach and I won't be recommending this.

[Anne Van · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting short novel of ideas, the writer sets up 5 or 6 people who confront the meaning of truth vs. faith, adore vs. love. It's set in London, so, of course, I liked it.

[kerry sandison · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read Francesca Kay's first book, An Equal Stillness, that won her the Orange Award for new writers in 2009. It was a most compelling, beautiful book with prose that read like poetry conjuring images that leapt from the pages and lingered. I loved it. I was delighted to discover a new writer and immediately ordered The Translation of the Bones with great anticipation of another deeply satisfying read. It was anything but. I could not believe that this book was written by the same person. The prose lacked the lyricism of her first book. The storyline was not compelling at all, in fact I found it quite stodgy. I struggled my way to the end and could have given up anywhere along the way without any sense of incompletion. I laboured to the end because I kept hoping that the book would redeem itself and show again the author's talent that I saw in her first book. The characters lacked depth and showed little or no development. I was left disengaged from them all - none of them mattered to me.
All the wonderful elements in the first book, prose, characters and their development, and an intriguing storyline that kept me turning the pages late into the night were missing in this second book. What a pity. I will certainly highly recommend An Equal Stillness but cannot recommend The Translation of the Bones.

[Joje · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am especially impressed with the deep inner presentation of these otherwise drab characters in the real world, with their eloquence just for us in clear, expressive images and thought: with the partial exception of Mary-Margaret, aptly. Even the simplest or most morbid of them from the outside had a voice that resonated, especially the mothers, though not only, with a rose to Alice Armitage as a pleasant surprise. Father O’Connor’s cameo performance in spoken words at his arrival confirms the affirmation at the heart of the book. Had we not seen so much of the main characters’ thoughts before he speaks the final assessments, he’d have fallen flat like a cliche or a klutzy deus ex machina, but he doesn’t.

[Nina Milton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Francesca Kay’s The Translation of Bones (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2011), is an exploration of the religious and the mad. Is the Madonna in the church really weeping?
Kay moves between three main characters, but you can see that she makes her narration ‘hover above them’, keeping an even hand, even within interior monologue: "The embers of a feeling that had not burned in Fidelma for a long time shifted a little to reveal the faintest glow. She had taken care of Mary-Margaret once, had fed her, clothed her, rocked her, sung her the sad songs of her own childhood. She had kept her, which was much more to the point… "

[caroline van wilgen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a gripping story. How I would love to meet it s author Francesca Kay .
I even copied some lines in a diary to save as they where full of wisdom and describing life as it is!
As a non catholic it took me some time to get used to all descriptions of rituals and the symbolism behind it.
I am sorry to learn Francesca Kay has not been writing many books since Translation of the Bones.
But even so! read this one, you will remember this story for a long time to come as it challenges your view on people who are living on the fringes of society and on issues as guilt and being disconnected in order to survive.

[Anne Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Food for thought with this book. It’s well constructed with lots of parallels for comparison. There are three mothers with differing attitudes to their children. There are two people who are struggling with their faith. There is one person who believes God has chosen her to perform a task; she is only waiting to find out what He wants from her. When she believes she knows, a course is set which leads to tragedy.

[Diana Agudo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not being a English native, I found this novel a litle bite dificult to follow. We have 3 main characters, all women: Simple (and almost crazy) Mary Margaret, her own mother, Fidelma, an obese invalid who festers in a tiny flat in the top of a tower block and Stella, a mother who misses her thisrd son, Felix who is way in a board School.
The church is the place where this 3 lives meet and change.
I think that Miss Kay is writer that is worth to follow. Will do.

[Pat Seabrook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Translation of Bones looks at the way religion affects different people in a small community. People are drawn by a supposed miracle, which leaves the church in a strange position as to how to cope with the outcome. The reality is that religion can touch people in many different ways with surprising outcomes. I enjoyed the book, but felt a great sadness that perhaps we still not as aware in communities as we should be of people who are struggling and need our help, but are afraid to ask.

[Virma · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not like this book. Sad story of one event that changes several lives. Characters are depressing and you can’t help but feel pity for them all. Just pass.

[Birgitt Krumboeck · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quiet gem of a book. A story about faith and love.

[Oana-Maria Uliu · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was rather slow, and the event that put things in motion happened rather late, past the midpoint. However, by the end I was terribly moved. And the writing is beautiful.

[Sophia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Translation of the Bones explores themes of motherhood, religion and community, and follows a group of people who are all connected with the catholic Church of the Sacred Heart in London. The parishoners are led by Father Diamond, a devout and good-hearted priest who is in charge of the full running of the church while its main guardian, Father O'Connor, is away.

One day Mary-Margaret O'Reilly, a volunteer at the church, is polishing the figure of Christ on the cross when she has a fall and hits her head. However, just before she falls, she sees blood from the figure's head and believes she has witnessed a miracle. While recuperating in hospital she relates the incident to a nurse, who in turn tells her friends, and soon the church is swamped with people anxious to see the miracle for themselves.

Meanwhile Mary-Margaret returns home to her morbidly obese mother, Fidelma, who barely moves from her chair in the tower block flat where they live and reminisces about the days when she was young and beautiful. We also follow Stella, another of Father Diamond's parishoners, who is married to an MP. Stella is a devoted mother who pines for her three children who are far from her, particularly her youngest son, Felix, the pride of her heart, who is away at boarding school.

The book doesn't have traditional chapters, but instead is divided into short sections which follow each of the protagonists in turn. They live ordinary lives, have their hopes and fears, and react in their various ways to the disturbances at the church. But while they are distracted by their own problems there is trouble brewing, trouble which will haunt them with "if only" for the rest of their lives. The author did a brilliant job of creating a sense of unease, which grows almost imperceptibly until all your alarm bells are ringing and you want to run inside the book and warn everybody.

The novel asks questions of the reader about the nature of faith and love, and the defences that people build against being hurt by tragedy. Father Diamond is our guide through this moral maze; he is our Everyman character whose faith is shaken by events at the church, and who must reorder his belief system in consequence. There's a lot going on under the surface, and I find my mind keeps going back to the book and ruminating over it.

Translation of the Bones is a truly marvellous book. It's beautifully written and managed to quietly draw me in and make me care about the characters. I was surprised to see a rating of only three stars on Goodreads, but closer inspection revealed that many International readers found this book too British. Perhaps that's one of the reasons it affected me so much; the setting is a drab and ordinary, and the characters are the sort of everyday folk I meet all the time, so its devastating climax seemed all the more shocking.

I'm so glad to have found this absolute gem

[Chinoiseries · Rating 1 out of 5]

[This review was originally posted on my blog.]

One of the themes in The Translation of the Bones is the Catholic belief system and the different degrees of faith held by the protagonists in the book. Father Diamond, a former mathematician who succumbed to the inevitability of his calling, often wonders whether he will ever live up to the requirements of his job. A firm believer he might be, it is not easy for him to conveying love and acceptance without any discrimination. Slightly down the scale of faith are elderly Alice Armitage and Tory trophy wife Stella Morrison. Mrs Armitage zealously visits the infirm and needy, but is rather preoccupied with her soldier son. Stella is the dutiful spouse of a politician, but underneath her composed exterior she pines for her young son Felix, far away at boarding school. She performs the rituals of her religion on auto-pilot. Fidelma O'Reilly, morbidly obese mother of Mary-Margaret, is weary of and worn down by her faith. She has not left her tower block apartment for years. Memories of her youth in Ireland and a supply of junk food are her only sustenance. Her thirtysomething daughter, born with a mental retardation, is the most devout creature of them all. It is she who saw the statue of Christ come to life. The equally pious Kiti Mendoza, a Filipina nurse in whom Mary-Margaret has confided, is convinced of the truth of the matter and gathers up friends and family members to go and witness the miracle for themselves. And finally, there is Azin Qureshi, a man of science rather than religion, and the psychiatrist assigned to treat Mary-Margaret after the calamity.
In my opinion, too many people were given a part in this book, resulting in a very diluted story: I did not feel that any one of them was given sufficient depth. Some characters I considered downright boring or unpleasant. They were all very difficult to relate to, from Mary-Margaret feeding a toddler sweets, crisps and cola (!) to Stella who only seemed to have an incomprehensible obsession for her youngest son. This only proves to me that religion isn't an automatic solution for all the problems in one's life. In Mary-Margaret's case, her doggedness in believing she is the chosen one leads to her downfall and the implication of innocents. As for Stella, she may be quite actively involved in church activities, these do not take away the source of her unhappiness.
I would have liked to see the narrative pick up speed and more character development happening after the accident, and the ensuing inertia was therefore all the more disappointing. I readily admit that this is just not my kind of book: it simply concentrates too much on the role of religion. Don't misunderstand me, I don't believe that there is anything wrong with this per se, but I do get annoyed by people who leave their fate in the hands of a higher power.

[Marvin · Rating 3 out of 5]

For much of this novel, I thought I was reading a fairly standard lightweight English novel about the various people, especially women, associated with a parish church during Lent, though with particularly evocative prose about these people's everyday lives & responsibilities as they anticipate--or fear--a miracle--or a terrible tragedy--breaking into their rather mundane lives. The author is particularly good with the mothers' feelings. And the humble parish priest is rendered entirely sympathetically, a relative rarity in contemporary fiction. About 3/4 of the way through the novel, a shocking development took me entirely by surprise, and the remainder of the book is very sad. It's almost unheard of for me to wish a book were longer than it is, but I think that this novel might have benefited from placing that event at the midpoint and spinning out its consequences more fully for more of the characters. Still, another effective example of contemporary fiction dealing subtly with the possibility--or impossibility--of the divine breaking into everyday life; it's not entirely clear where the author comes down on the issue other than to plead indirectly for at least allowing for the possibility that those who do believe are not necessarily deluded of acting in bad faith.

[Alumine Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent, small book, with a wonderful story. Not everything we read has to run to 400+ pages...A great story in the hands of a skillful author can be told in a small book. Less is more.

This book is centered around a small church with a small congregation, mostly devout older women but not exclusively so. The priest, Father Diamond, is there doing his duties, unambitious, privately having a crisis of faith but pottering along in a small corner of Battersea.

All is as it should be until a simple-minded faithful parishioner Mary Margaret O'Reilly supposedly witnesses a miracle. Word gets out and the world goes mad, bus loads of tourists and pilgrims arrive and cause a huge crisis of faith for all involved.

The story centers around the miracle and it's consequences in the lives of Mary Margaret and her reclusive, morbidly obese mother and we also see the impact it has on the lives of Stella Morrison who is lonely in her marriage and misses her son who is away at boarding school and Alice Armitage eagerly awaits the return of her soldier son who is stationed in Afghanistan. The whole community is affected, we just don't know if it will be for good or ill.

The story is beautifully woven, well worth reading.

[MB · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the book cover:

"A riveting story of religious passion gone tragically wrong."
Yup. In spades.

"When word gets out that Mary-Margaret O'Reilly, a somewhat slow-witted but harmless young woman, may have been witness to a miracle, religious mania descends on the Church of the Sacred Heart in Battersea, London."
Not mentioned-the sly dig at social media's roll in the mania.

"Slyly funny, utterly haunting and nothing short of unforgettable."
The only part I would disagree with is slyly funny. It's clever, witty at times, but only enough to give a balance to the bleaker pieces of the story.

And there are some very bleak pieces.

But I did find it moving, despite my lack of personal religion.